The Beer Nut: #Chugs4Cancer challenges you to chug for a cause

Chugging a beer can be fun – every once in a while it’s good to pour a beer in a glass and just down it.

Now, a Facebook group – Verified Beer Traders – is asking you to chug your beer for a cause. They have started the movement, #chugs4cancer, hoping people will donate beer to a cancer charity of their choice.

“Beer groups are funny – they can be vicious but they can be pretty giving, too,” said Verified Beer Traders administrator Chris Kazan of Connecticut (Carl Banks online). “The idea is to unite everyone. We’re all just a bunch of beer geeks and nerds, but this is a way for us to give back.”

The idea is similar to the Ice Bucket Challenge, but instead of pouring a bucket of ice on top of yourself, you chug a beer (or any beverage of your choice, so non-beer drinkers or even children can be involved).

The person records themselves drinking the beer, say what charity they’ll donate to and then challenge at least three others to do the same. Kazan said the group has raised more than $10,000 for cancer charities.

“The goal is to really get this to go viral,” said Kazan. “Cancer is such a big thing. In some way, whether it is directly in your household or not, it’s a big part of everyone’s lives.”

The group, Kazan said, was like most beer groups until recently. People would log on, talk about the beers they were drinking, arrange beer trades or just argue about beer.

About a month ago, a member of the group mentioned a GoFundMe page for a child in the Springfield area who had cancer. The mother was trying to raise money to pay for treatment, but the GoFundMe effort wasn’t successful. The group got together and raised $7,500 to reach her goal. Three days later, the boy died.

“That kind of changed the direction of the group, the kind of things we wanted to do,” said Kazan. “We still trade. We still talk, but now we also do this.”

The #Chugs4Cancer is catching the attention of a lot of people in the beer world. Dean Rohan, owner of Tree House Brewing Company in Charlton and Monson, did a video and challenged other well-known brewers from around the country and one in Europe.

Kazan said he also heard from a “top PGA tour money winner” who is interested in taking the challenge, as well as a current member of the New England Patriots. He said students at various colleges have also started doing #Chugs4Cancer.

“Phase one was really having people understand this, and phase two is really to have max visibility,” said Kazan. “We want to make this grow huge and raise a lot of money. It’s something we’re really proud of.”

Norman Miller is a Daily News staff writer. Email him at nmiller@wickedlocal.com or call 508-626-3823. Check out the Beer Nut blog at http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/section/blogs01?taxid=646&start=2. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram @RealBeerNut and on Facebook at facebook.com/NormanMillerBeerNut.